9
2009
Roy Halladay, Alex Rios And The Mets
An article by 
On Monday, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported that Blue Jays GM, J.P. Ricciardi is willing to listening to offers for the ace of their rotation, RHP Roy Halladay. Needless to say, before long the blogosphere was buzzing with all sorts of hypothetical trades. As one of our readers wrote, when someone like Halladay comes along you don’t think about it, you go out and get him.
Ken Davidoff of Newsday, spoke to the Blue Jays GM and confirmed what Rosenthal first reported.
“Halladay is signed through next year, and there’s very little chance that he’ll stick with the Jays after that. Toronto is not going to make the playoffs this year. So, he’ll listen to offers.”
Obviously, besides the Mets at least a dozen other teams have interest in Halladay. The Blue Jays reportedly want at least three top prospects according to several reports. Matt Cerrone guessed it could take Fernando Martinez, Wilmer Flores and Brad Holt.
Toronto will not trade him within his division, so the Red Sox and Yankees are out, but the Phillies are already in contact with Ricciardi.
Last week the Blue Jays also hinted that they would trade both Alex Rios and Vernon Wells, so that they could free up money to sign Halladay, so something must have transpired for the Blue Jays to shift their position so quickly.
Last week I wrote extensively about how the Mets should go after Alex Rios.
In his last three full seasons, Rios has hit .296 with 56 homers, 245 RBI, 64 stolen bases, 273 runs scored, 123 doubles, and 21 triples.
Currently he is batting .260 with 19 doubles, 10 homers, 46 RBI, 41 runs scored, and 13 stolen bases. He is just 28 years old.
How can anyone say that this one bat would not make a difference?
Plus, he wouldn’t be a rental player as he is signed through 2014 at an average of $12 million dollars annually. He will only be 33 in the final year of that contract, and there is an option for 2015.
He can play rightfield, and also plays a solid centerfield and can give Beltran’s knee a rest when needed to keep him fresh for the stretch run.
As for Roy Halladay, a 1-2 punch of Halladay and Johan Santana would be the most lethal in baseball. It would certainly give the Mets the edge in any short series in the post season. He would certainly be a difference maker. The question is are we willing to give up F-Mart, Brad Holt (or Bobby Parnell), and Wilmer Flores to acquire him.
I’ve seen enough of F-Mart to know that while he might be an above average player in five years, the Mets are a “win-now” team. By the time F-Mart or Wilmer Flores are ready, Carlos Beltran and K-Rod will be gone, Johan will be on the downside of his career, Reyes would be a free agent, you get the picture.
Do you want to win now, while Wright, Beltran, Johan, K-Rod and Reyes are in their prime?
Or do you want to keep F-Mart and company and wait a few years for another golden opportunity to present itself?
The Mets would be lucky if just one of those prospects actually made it, let alone all three.
Can you recall the four top prospects we gave up for Johan?
Surely you haven’t forgotten our former top ten prospects Deolis Guerra (4.63 in AA), Philip Humber (6.69 ERA in AAA), Kevin Mulvey (4.17 ERA, 1.51 WHIP in AAA) and Carlos Gomez who is batting .218 for the Twins…
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
Went to my first Mets game, a Mayors Trophy game at Shea, in '73. We beat the Yankees 8-4 and I was hooked. I marched in two Banner Day parades, and before the Grand Slam single, there was the "Hendu Can Do" grand slam - I was there. I've collected Mets memorabilia all my life and started Mets Merized Online to feed my addiction.
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationals | 26 | 18 | .591 | - |
| Braves | 26 | 20 | .565 | 1.0 |
| Mets | 24 | 21 | .533 | 2.5 |
| Marlins | 24 | 21 | .533 | 2.5 |
| Phillies | 23 | 23 | .500 | 4.0 |
Last updated: 05/25/2012
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Write Your Own Mets Post
Please Mets, do not trade Brad Holt.
Don’t trade any top prospects.
I would trade F-Mart, Niese, and Flores, but not Holt.
I wouldn’t do it in a heartbeat in trading those top prospects. I’m for any trades but also Minaya better be careful not to deplete the farm system.
CAPSLOCK=DISABILITY ACCOMODATION
MY OFFER: PELFREY,F-MART,MURPHY,NIESE,KUNZ,MUNIZ,TBD* & I WILLINGLY ASSUME ALL REMAINING CONTRACT.
*CHOICE BETWEEN WAGNER & PUTZ (TO BE MADE BY 8/31)GIVING JP A COUPLE OF WEEKS TO EVALUATE THE GOODS Vs MAJOR LEAGUERS. I BELIEVE THIS GETS THE DOG WALKED WHILE RETAINING ENOUGH ‘PIPELINERS’ JAYS GET AN FORMER FIRST ROUNDER & DEVELOPING STUD SP)PELF)= A SPARE(NEISE) & AN AFFORDABLE QUALITY CLOSER(PUTZ,WAGS)TO REPLACE BJ RYAN BOTH HAVE $8M CLUB OPTIONS FOR 2010. SINCE DEADLINE IS 7/31 AN AUDITION PERIOD IN AUGUST IS NECESSARY KUNZ & MUNIZ AS MILB CLOSERS ARE BUILT IN INSURANCE PLAN.
I’m shocked that nobody wants to trade Brad Holt who only throws a fastball and did well in A ball, but is struggling in AA.
Holt won’t make to the majors unless he adds a changeup and another pitch to his one-pitch arsenal.
He now throws a curve
Played with Holt growing up and against him in College. Kid has an awesome arm and tons of potential. He WILL be in the BIGS by next year.
Holt is still very young. Hes only started 4 games in AA ball. Give him some time.
Why take the gamble in hoping that these prospects will turn out to be good? These guys could all turn out to be Phillip Humbers, Milledges, etc.
I’d rather have Doc, you know you’re getting Cy Young quality pitching from him. By the time Holt, Flores, FMart and company are all developed, like you said, Joe, all of our core guys will be gone/past their prime.
I think we have 2-3 years left with this group, and if we don’t win it all, its time to blow it all up and rebuild.
ill trade maybe Parnell in place of Holt, and i dont know if i would rather trade Flores or Jefry Marte. ill put Jon Neise in the deal though
HAS JOHAN TAUGHT US NOTHING?!? WE NEED BATS!
8 innings 2 earned does nothing if you only score 1 yourself.
The bats will eventually come back from the DL, but where is the pitching coming from???
We need Halladay!!!
I’d do it…obviously try to talk them down, since the asking price is rarely what it winds up being, but last I checked, the goal was to win World Series titles, and I’d trade a potential one down the line for one this year any day of the week. Not to mention, the Mets aren’t the Marlins or the Blue Jays who have to rely on players signed for minimal money to win, we can always sign someone in 3-5 years when Flores or Holt or whoever would be starting to have a major impact. I would love to keep F-Mart, but if it’s F-Mart (and Flores and Holt/Niese/whoever) for a 2009 World Championship, I’ll take the latter. Also, Halladay, as mentioned, is already signed through 2010, and would likely want to negotiate a long-term deal, so it’s not like it’s a now-or-bust situation. Halladay would not only keep us in contention while we wait on Beltran and Reyes to return (and Putz and Delgado and Wagner), but could put us over the top in our division.
Equally as important is to keep him out of Philly. Halladay to Philly could mean we’d have to pack it in for the next 3-5 years, which renders Beltran, Putz, Wagner, and everything we’ve pushed for since 2004 as a total and complete waste.
I don’t understand this continuing assumption that “of course Halladay would want to sign a long-term deal.” He’ll command top dollar on the open market, so why exactly would he limit himself in signing an extension with us? I’m very hesitant about this trade, if it only gets us Halladay for 1.5 years (and basically only one, since just adding Halladay isn’t gonna make the difference this year unless everyone else comes back from injury too). Sorry, we’re not winning the World Series this year, guys. Even when Halladay comes back, our offense would still be atrocious. Even with the addition of Rios. Plus, I don’t know if anyone else has noticed, but our bullpen is a disaster right now. Too many pieces are missing, and we’ve sustained too many long-term injuries to compete this year. Time to look to 2010.
I do however love Rios. Let’s get that done if the price is cheap.
Also, “I’ve seen enough of F-Mart to know what he might be above average in five years?” By the day, I become more amazed by the ridiculous statements that get posted by this blog. Who are you? Are you the Ghost of Christmas future? How on earth are you able to predict the development of a player over the span of 5 years? You’ve been able to deduce, from a rushed 100-at bat stint on an injury-riddled major league team, that F-Mart won’t be ready to contribute for another 5 years?
I guess the Mariners are glad you weren’t working for them in 1994/1995, when a young shortstop accumulated 200 major league at-bats at the age of 20 (F-Mart’s age), hit .225, only walked 9 times while striking out 62 times, and not really hitting for any power. Man, that guy wasn’t gonna be ready for another 5 years!!!
Oh wait, in 1996 he hit .358, 36 HR, 123 RBI, 15 SB, .414 OBP, and would henceforth be known as Alex Rodriguez.
I would trade any 3 or 4 prospects we have for Halladay. Like Joe D said, this is a win now team, and I think next season is our last real chance to win it. With Reyes and Beltran healthy, and with a one two punch of Halladay and Santana the Mets would really have a great shot at the post season, if not a WS. All they would need to add would be a solid LF or 1B and you have a seriously good team.
It’ll never happen. The Wilpons and Omar are so spooked by the Kazmir deal they’ll never pull the trigger on a significant mid-season trade. We’re going to end up going to the wire with our AAA team in Citi, AA in Buffalo — you get the picture. And, they’re going to lose big. It’s killing me.
There is a big difference in trading for Victor (I suck) Zambrano, and Roy Halladay.
I know. That was more of a comment on the Wilpon’s and Omar than the trade making sense. I think it’s imperative that we make this deal. I just don’t think we will.
Halladay to the Phillies is worst case scenario. The Blue Jays also want a top SS prospect, and a power bat.
If we are out of the Halladay sweepstakes we could take Rios’s or Well’s contract off of their hands.
Rios would make sense but not Wells. Wells has a very bad contract……………… I hate to burst your bubbles but does everyone really think the Mets can add that kind of payroll. I think we could and should pull the trigger but I just think the Wilpons are to cheap to add Doc Halladays contract. Madoff anyone. It would also put us behind the 8-ball in contract negotiations. (Remember the Kris Benson deal? eeewww) Two 20 Million dollar pitchers on a team that was to cheap to sign a decent free agent outfielder that everyone knew we needed. I just dont see it.
ALWAYS trade prospects for proven talent
Pitching, in the end, always wins out!
I’d do it in a heart beat. It will put us right back into contention….for 2010.
Another ace isn’t going to fix the real issues of 2009, but that doesn’t mean we can’t put this team in good shape for the next few years.
Trade Ollie and Church plus a B prospect for Rios
The Mets have contacted the Blue Jays about Halladay, but won’t give up any “top prospects” ? Do the Mets expect Toronto’s GM to say “Hey, we really like Nelson Figueroa and Cory Sullivan, and if you throw in Wilson Valdez, we’ve got a deal” ? The Mets should gladly trade any 3 prospects Toronto wants for Halladay and either Rios or Wells, starting with Fernando Martinez, who MAY have the potential to be as good as either of them, but probably not better.
Alex Rios is a very nice player. An “Angel Pagen” who CAN actually give you consistent very good major league level play. Rios hitting #6 in August and September behind Beltran or Wright looks great to me.
If we ever get Beltran and Delgado back. Will Fernando Martinez ever develop into a better player than Alex Rios is now? It’s very debatable.
Rios is signed for the next few years its a no brainier to me.
Alex Rios for:
It’s soo hard to type in Fernando Martinez’s name!1 Hahaha
Would they Jays take Daniel Murphy and Edie Kutz for Rios? Uhh I doubt it.
Think about an outfield next year of:
CF Carlos Beltran
LF Alex Rios
RF Ryan Church
A very athletic good fielding outfield to roam the vast CitiField Outfied wilderness.